KeyCorp’s regional headquarters to be located in Buffalo

Another piece of the puzzle required to fold First Niagara Financial Group Inc. into KeyCorp was put into place Wednesday with the announcement that KeyCorp will take over much of First Niagara’s existing commercial real estate space in Western New York, including part of First Niagara’s headquarters facilities.

Cleveland-based KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) plans to make Larkinville — the Buffalo neighborhood where First Niagara has been headquartered since September 2009 — its Northeast regional headquarters. KeyCorp will also hang onto First Niagara’s back-office space on Ridge Lea Road in Amherst, as well as the 75,000-square-foot administrative center on Transit Road in Niagara County.

What remains unknown is how the pending acquisition will disrupt the local job market. First Niagara employs about 2,300 people in Western New York, including 750 people in Larkinville, many of whom hold administrative-level jobs that already exist in Cleveland.